1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a digital home information integrating system in which various audio, visual, computer and communication (AVCC) apparatuses and various living environment electronics apparatuses arranged at user's home are cooperated to establish a home network system and digital media home information processed in the AVCC apparatuses and digital environment home information processed in the living environment electronics apparatuses are integrated in the home network system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, a user has used a personal computer at his home to make good use of his experience in a local area network (LAN) and an internet operated for business in his office, so that the user can receive not only self-management information but also services of various external information such as an electronic mail.
Also, because various digital information apparatuses such as a digital video camera (DVC), STB and a digital video disk (DVD) used for picture information, audio information and/or character information and various digital information-communication apparatuses such as a portable telephone have been widely used, the user can receive or transmit various information from/to various media at his home. Information processed in the digital information apparatuses and the digital information-communication apparatuses is called digital media home information, and the digital media home information is processed in various digital audio, visual, computer and communication (AVCC) apparatuses.
In addition, it is desired to prepare a social infrastructure. For example, it is argued how an automatic meter-reading system for automatically checking the consumption of electricity at user's home, the consumption of gas at user's home and the consumption of water at user's home and an overall security system for detecting crime-prevention information, gas-leaking information, fire occurrence information for each home are prepared as the social infrastructure. Also, because the number of aged persons living alone is increased and the requirement of in-home care for the aged persons is increased, an in-home care system for each aged person has been required as another social infrastructure.
Information processed in the social infrastructure is called digital environment home information, and the digital environment home information is processed in various living environment electronics apparatuses.
2.1. Previously Proposed Art:
The digital media home information is processed for each home according to Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Standards.
Also, because a data receiving/transmitting speed for the digital environment home information is low and a data volume of the digital environment home information is small, it has been argued that the digital environment home information is processed according to a spectrum diffusion method in a home bus system using an electric power line. In cases where the digital environment home information is processed according to the spectrum diffusion method in the home bus system, because an electric power line is arranged in user's house regardless of whether the house is planned to be newly-built or the house has been already built, it is not required to newly arrange the electric power line in the user's house.
2.2. Problems to be Solved by the Invention:
However, in cases where the digital media home information and the digital environment home information are integrated and processed at use's home, there are following drawbacks.
In cases where the digital media home information is processed for each home according to the IEEE Standards, it is also required to process the digital environment home information according to the IEEE Standards. That is, to operate the automatic meter-reading system for automatically checking the consumption of electricity at user's home, the consumption of gas at user's home and the consumption of water at user's home and the overall security system for detecting crime-prevention information, gas-leaking information, fire occurrence information for each home, it is required to arrange a digital environment home information network operated according to the IEEE Standards at all rooms of user's house. Therefore, the user requires a large amount of capital investment. In particular, in cases where a user's house has been already built, it is at variance with the reality to newly arrange the digital environment home information network in the user's house. Also, because a data receiving/transmitting speed and a data volume for the digital environment home information differ from those for the digital media home information, it is difficult to connect the living environment electronics apparatuses used for the digital environment home information with the AVCC apparatuses used for the digital environment home information.
Also, in cases where the digital environment home information is processed according to the spectrum diffusion method in the home bus system, it is required to process the digital media home information according to the spectrum diffusion method in the home bus system. However, because a data receiving/transmitting speed for the digital media home information is high and a data volume of the digital media home information is large, it is difficult to process the digital media home information according to the spectrum diffusion method in the home bus system.